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COMMUNICATING WITH ELECTED OFFICIALS

Debi Johnson - noemail@wsus.org — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 17:00:00 GMT

COMMUNICATING WITH ELECTED OFFICIALS

On issues important to you and your urology practice

A new membership benefit of the Washington State Urology Society is our partnership with the nation's largest publisher of congressional directories, and the leading provider of Internet tools for congressional communication and civic participation known as Capital Advantage. Visit the WSUS Members Only Resource Center Government Relations tab to explore your new membership benefit.

Tips On Telephoning Your Elected Representatives

To find your senators' and representative's phone numbers, you may use our searchable online congressional directory or call the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at (202)224-3121 and ask for your senators' and/or representative's office.

Remember that telephone calls are usually taken by a staff member, not the member of Congress. Ask to speak with the aide who handles the issue about which you wish to comment.

After identifying yourself, tell the aide you would like to leave a brief message, such as: "Please tell Senator/Representative (Name) that I support/oppose (S.___/H.R.___)."

You will also want to state reasons for your support or opposition to the bill. Ask for your senators' or representative's position on the bill. You may also request a written response to your telephone call.

Tips On Writing Congress

The letter is the most popular choice of communication with a congressional office. If you decide to write a letter, this list of helpful suggestions will improve the effectiveness of the letter:

Your purpose for writing should be stated in the first paragraph of the letter. If your letter pertains to a specific piece of legislation, identify it accordingly, e.g., House bill: H. R. ____, Senate bill: S.____.

Be courteous, to the point, and include key information, using examples to support your position.

Address only one issue in each letter; and, if possible, keep the letter to one page.

Addressing Correspondence:

To a Senator:

The Honorable (full name)
__(Rm.#)__(name of)Senate Office Building
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Senator:

To a Representative:

The Honorable (full name)
__(Rm.#)__(name of)House Office Building
United States House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Representative:

Note: When writing to the Chair of a Committee or the Speaker of the House, it is proper to address them as:

Dear Mr. Chairman or Madam Chairwoman:

Dear Madam Speaker or Mr. Speaker:

Tips On E-mailing Congress

Generally, the same guidelines apply as with writing letters to Congress. You may find and e-mail your senators and representative directly from this Web site.

10-Mar-08 12:00 PM

WSUS joins National Urology efforts with physician and patient advocacy

noemail@wsus.org — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 17:00:00 GMT

What an exciting time for urologists to be in our nation’s capitol. The 5th annual Joint Advocacy Conference (JAC), took place from March 20-23, 2010, the precise days during which President Obama’s historic healthcare reform bill was passed by Congress and officially signed into law. The JAC is an annual joint advocacy effort between the American Urological Association (AUA) and the American Association of Clinical Urologists (AACU) in which urologists across the country travel to Capitol Hill in an effort to communicate directly with our legislators and representatives about important issues as they pertain to urologists. As your state advocacy group, the WSUS is very dedicated to this effort. Every year, attendance to this important conference grows, and in 2010, 38 states represented by 177 JAC attendees completed over 1200 visits to the Hill. Your contingent included two past presidents of the WSUS, Dr. Jeff Frankel, who is the current AACU President, and Dr. Rich...

TESTICULAR CANCER: The Importance of doing a self examination

noemail@wsus.org — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 19:00:00 GMT

By Christopher Porter, MD Introduction Testicular cancer is the most common cancer in young men and it is much more common in white American men than in African-American men; however the rates of testicular cancer in both black and white men have been rising steadily over the past two decades. It is important to know that testis cancer is a very curable disease and the chances of being cured are remarkably improved if the disease is found early. In fact, cure rates for men whose disease have not spread are in the range of 97-99%. The testicles are the male sex glands which are held in the scrotum and are responsible for making sperm and the male sex hormone, testosterone. As a young man, you may be able to recognize some of the signs of testicular cancer, which include a lump or enlargement of one or both of your testicles, a heavy dull ache or sudden pain within the scrotum, or problems with breast enlargement. Nobody yet really knows the causes of testicular cancer but we do know...

June President's Message

noemail@wsus.org — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 21:00:00 GMT

The Washington State Urology Society was well represented, once again, at the 2008 Joint Advocacy Meeting in Washington D.C. March 31- April 3. This was the third annual meeting jointly hosted by the AUA and AACU. It provided a forum in which we could meet with State and Federal legislators representing the interests of Washington Urologists voicing concerns about current legislation. In addition to concerns over the SGR and the Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) Program, we discussed the importance of comprehensive office radiology access and the counterproductive effect of legislation limiting ownership of Ultrasound, CT, and MRI. Last week we finally saw the proposed fix of the Medicare Physicians Payment reductions that were scheduled to go into effect July 1st (10.6%) and January 1st, 2009 (15.6%). The proposal by Senator Baucus (D-Montana) provides for avoidance of the July cut and a 1.1% increase in 2009 scheduled reimbursements. The cost of the legislation is borne partly by...

HORMONE REPLACEMENT THERAPY - A Personalized Approach

noemail@wsus.org — Thu, 29 May 2008 18:00:00 GMT

HORMONE REPLACEMENT THERAPY - A Personalized Approach Amy Ochino, MD Spokane, WA Today, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is often underutilized because of poor public image and perceptions. It isn’t for everyone, but it can help a great number of women transition into menopause. It is a personal decision to be made between a woman and her health care provider. The average age of menopause is 51 years. We define menopause as the absence of menses for a twelve month period of time. The years preceding menopause, called perimenopause, are usually a three to five year period in which menopausal symptoms can begin. This is the time of life that can be characterized by menstrual cycle changes, hot flushes, night sweats, mood changes and vaginal dryness. Options for HRT depend on a woman’s symptoms. Some women are lucky enough to go through their change of life with minimal concerns. These women may not need any transition relief with HRT. Many women, however, feel that...

Female Urinary Incontinence

noemail@wsus.org — Wed, 28 May 2008 18:00:00 GMT

Urinary Incontinence Jane Miller, MD Associate Professor of Urology, University of Washington (Seattle, WA) Elizabeth Miller, MD Bellevue Urology Associates (Bellevue, WA) Urinary incontinence (UI) is the involuntary loss of urine. UI is very common in women. Approximately 38% of women experience urinary incontinence at some time in their lives. Although UI can occur at any age, it does become more prevalent as women get older. UI has been shown to significantly affect patient’s quality of life, sexual function and in some cases their health. Women with osteoporosis (thinning bones) and urinary urge incontinence (UUI) have been shown to have greater rates of hip fracture due to falling as they hurry to the bathroom. Patients with UI have higher rates of anxiety and depression. There are two major types of urinary incontinence. The first and most common is stress urinary incontinence (SUI)—involuntary urine loss associated with activities such as coughing or...

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